Nigeria

Abstract

Relatively peaceful presidential and gubernatorial elections in March and April 2015 marked a positive shift in Nigeria's history of political violence. However, the inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari has not diminished the potency of the country's serious human rights challenges. Violence and insecurity persist in the northeast despite the recapture, from the militant group Boko Haram, of dozens of towns and the rescue of over 1,000 hostages by Nigerian and neighboring countries’ forces. The name Boko Haram means “Western education is forbidden.” Boko Haram carried out probably its most vicious attacks in January around Baga, a fishing settlement in Borno state, northeast Nigeria, killing at least 2,000 people and sacking the military base of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF). More than 9,500 civilians have died in the conflict and the number of displaced people has increased from just over 1 million at the end of 2014 to almost 2 million in 2015. Nigerian security forces have neither taken adequate steps to protect civilians during operations against Boko Haram, nor to protect the rights of rescued hostages. In other parts of the country, frequent violence between farmers and cattle owners in the north-central states remained unresolved in 2015. There have been few investigations or prosecutions against those responsible for the violence. The lack of justice for victims helped fuel reprisal attacks, leading to continuous cycles of violence. Impunity for human rights crimes—such as torture committed by security forces, including police—remained pervasive. The conflict in the northeast between the militant group Boko Haram and Nigeria's security forces grew more deadly in 2015.